Perhaps a visual would help. Below is a
photo of Buck Angel, a transgender man. Representative John Kavanagh, the
genius behind this piece of legislation, is insisting that men like Buck should
use the women's restroom.

Buck Angel

The basics of the proposed legislation
is this: if you go to the "wrong" potty and get caught, you could be
jailed for six months. The idea is ridiculous for a number of obvious reasons.
Who will police and enforce this law? Will people have to show their birth
certificates (not just their driver's licenses, even!) before they can pee?
Yes, we could joke quite a bit here about the "potty police".

It is evident that Representative
Kavanagh has no knowledge of the transgender community. He reportedly stated
that "this law simply restores the law of society: Men are men and women
are women." I believe that he thinks all transgender people are trans
women in the midst of transition or who do not pass easily.

Kavanagh wants these women, the
intended target of his legislation, to use men's facilities, presumably because
he thinks that they look like men and are "actually" men. What he
doesn't realize is that there are many trans women and lots of trans men who no
one would ever suspect as being trans. For example, if I walked into a women's
bathroom today (under Kavanagh's proposed law, I would have to – my birth
certificate says female), I'm sure the women there would be rather surprised.
The effects of testosterone therapy (facial hair, male pattern baldness,
thickened vocal chords resulting in a deep voice, etc) are extremely powerful
for most trans guys, who virtually always pass as male. Even though I stopped
taking testosterone a couple of years ago to have a baby, I still pass (and
identify) as male at all times.

Kavanagh's bill would result in
queering washrooms, not straightening them out. Trans men who are
indistinguishable from cisgender (non-trans) men would have to use women's
bathrooms. Hence, Kavanagh wants Buck Angel in the ladies' room. In a certain
way, I think this could be great! If trans men were to obey such a law, the
general public would suddenly realize just how many trans people there really
are and how "normal" we look (not to mention that we all have to pee,
just like everyone else). It's hilarious to think that Kavanagh's bill would
inadvertently turn restrooms into mixed gender spaces. I've often thought that
doing away with gender-segregated restrooms would be nice.

7 comments:

I wanted to stop by and thank you for visiting and commenting on my blog today. Your comment was a nice one to read after some of the others! If people can get so nuts about something as non-controversial as who should be able to adopt a dog, I guess it's no surprise that they would be fearful of a transgendered person using or not using a certain restroom. I can't believe this legislation would actually pass, but then again, you never know.

I know it's not popular amongst many transgender people to say, but I detest the notion of unisex bathrooms. As a transsexual woman, one of the delights and joys post-transition allows is knowing that women's public restrooms are MUCH more clean in general than men's. And there is a level of threat that many men just plain pose. I could not feel safe in such a vulnerable spot to do what I needed with often sexually aggressive men leering about. I simply can relax in that little sliver of women's space. It's not really negotiable. Of course it's not worth legislating over, and certainly not with this sort of rightist ignorance. But personally, the day they mandate unisex restrooms is the day I pee in the bushes.

I found your blog through a Facebook link about your rejection by LLL, so sorry to hear that an organization I held dear thru my 8 years of nursing would take such a narrow minded and isolating stance! Really sad.I loved this post about the Arizona legislation being proposed, my fist thought as I started reading was echoed in you last line! Make all the bathrooms unisex and the problem goes away!However I do enjoy a clean restroom....Love your blog, keep it up please!

Making all restrooms unisex will be a much bigger scandal than forcing transsexuals to use the restroom as defined in their birth certificate. why? Because it will mess with the heterosexuals. i'm against it though. they're not biologically male or female but it will be dangerous. as for transvestites, I agree, if they resemble their sex as stated in their birth certificate, then they should use the restroom as so. I will not feel safe if some guy comes into the women's restroom. Then we'd have a real problem.

I think it is a stupid bit of legislation.. but I could see laws following the common sense idea that if you can pass, you can piss in the restroom of your choosing... A person near and dear to me started his transition a while back and would regularly ask me if he passed enough to use the men's room that day... now he is fully identifiable as male and no one questions it at all :) By the way.. Buck Angel is one sexy man.. he can follow me into the ladies room any day, lol ;)

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Diclaimer

This blog is not intended to provide medical advice. It is meant to be fun and maybe informative. It’s based on my personal experience. I’m not a doctor or health care provider of any kind. For medical advice, please go see your health care provider. Furthermore, just because what I describe here worked for me and my family does NOT mean it will necessarily work for you and yours. Again, this is my personal experience.